The present invention relates to a new and distinct cultivar of Kalanchoe plant, botanically known as Kalanchoe laciniataxc3x97Kalanchoe blossfeldiana, and hereinafter referred to by the name xe2x80x98Rose Africanxe2x80x99.
The new Kalanchoe is a product of a planned breeding program conducted by the Inventor in Hinnerup, Denmark. The objective of the breeding program was to create new interspecific Kalanochoe cultivars with interesting flower colors and good postproduction longevity.
The new Kalanchoe originated from a cross made by the Inventor of an unidentified Kalanchoe laciniata seedling selection as the female, or seed, parent with the Kalanchoe blossfeldiana cultivar Mie, not patented, as the male, or pollen, parent. The cultivar Rose African was discovered and selected by the Inventor as a flowering plant within the progeny of the stated cross in a controlled environment in Hinnerup, Denmark.
Asexual reproduction of the new Kalanchoe by terminal cuttings taken at Hinnerup, Denmark, by the Inventor, has shown that the unique features of this new Kalachoe are stable and reproduced true to type in successive generations.
The cultivar Rose African has not been observed under all possible environmental conditions. The phenotype may vary somewhat with variations in environment such as temperature, daylength and light intensity, without, however, any variance in genotype.
The following traits have been repeatedly observed and are determined to be the unique characteristics of xe2x80x98Rose Africanxe2x80x99. These characteristics in combination distinguish xe2x80x98Rose Africanxe2x80x99 as a new and distinct cultivar:
1. Numerous white and pink bi-colored flowers.
2. Upright and vigorous plant habit.
3. Dark green dissected leaves.
4. Excellent postproduction longevity.
Plants of the new Kalanchoe differ primarily from plants of the parents in flower color, leaf size, and leaf shape.